Our Team

Staff Leadership

NeighborWorks® Southern New Hampshire has a strong team of professionals who manage and carry out the activities of the organization on a daily basis.

Robert Tourigny (Executive Director) joined the organization in May 2005, bringing over twenty years experience in both urban and rural environments in all aspects of housing activities, including homeownership, multi-family and single family development, home repair and weatherization, and rental management. He also brought a vision, and he has guided its transformation into an organization that addresses the affordable housing needs of a total of 31 communities in Southern New Hampshire, including the Cities of Manchester and Nashua. He has promoted and facilitated an approach of developing affordable housing in a very cooperative manner, inviting the input and approval of leaders and stakeholders from communities. This approach has resulted in NeighborWorks® Southern New Hampshire's reputation as a resource for communities, and has spurred several positive development projects in Southern New Hampshire. He has overseen the development of more than 1,200 units of affordable housing in his career, totaling over $134 million in community development investment.

Mr. Tourigny is involved in several initiatives that address the community development and affordable housing needs in New Hampshire. He serves on the Governing Council of Housing Action New Hampshire, and on the Board of Directors of the New Hampshire Community Development Finance Authority, and Granite United Way. Nationally and regionally he has served on the Board of Directors of the Northern New England Housing Investment Fund and the National Rural Housing Coalition, and was Chair of the Advisory Council for the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston. Locally, he is the past President of the Manchester Rotary.

Diane Brewster (Chief Operating Officer) brings a strong finance and business background to her position with more than twenty-five years of experience in accounting and real estate fields. She joined the staff in April 2004 as a HomeOwnership Counselor and transferred to the Finance area in September 2005. Diane oversees all accounting, human resource, and personnel functions for the organization and our affiliated entities. She is supported by Amanda Akerly, Finance Manager and Barbara Guillemette, Administrative Specialist/Finance Support. Diane holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell.

Michelle Caraccio (Resource Development Director) manages the organization’s outreach initiatives for fundraising, marketing and communications purposes. She joined the organization in July 1999 and brings more than 25 years of fund raising experience that has included resource development positions at Pine Manor College, WGBH in Boston, and Notre Dame College. Michelle holds a Masters of Arts degree from the University of Maryland at College Park and a Bachelors of Arts degree from the State University of New York at Albany.

Paul McLaughlin (Home Ownership Director) Paul provides oversight for all homeownership education and counseling services. He also conducts group outreach, seminars and workshops. He is supported by a team of four Homeownership Counselors, Richard Patterson and Evelyn Rivera, and our Homeownership Assistant, Tanya Hannigan. Paul joined the staff in December 2011, bringing significant experience in the homeownership and mortgage loan industries. Most recently, he was the Affordable Housing Loan Originator for six years with Merrimack County Savings Bank in Concord and Nashua. Paul served on the board of directors for Greater Nashua Habitat for Humanity and Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Nashua. Paul received CATCH Neighborhood Housing’s 2012 Volunteer of the Year Award and is a member of the 2016 class of Leadership Greater Nashua.

Jennifer A. Vadney (Neighborhood Development Director) is responsible for designing and implementing the community planning process for our multi-family development projects and projecting financial feasibility for these developments. She has a keen understanding of the community development needs in our target communities. She joined the staff in September 2000, and is supported by Logan Johnson, Neighborhood Development Project Specialist, Erica Brooks, Community Building Manager, Cynthia Timmons, and Stephanie Jimenez, Tenant Services Coordinators. Jennifer graduated from the University of New Hampshire with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and minors in both Business and Social Work.

Board of Directors and Board of Trustees

The Board of Directors is an actively engaged group of individuals. They meet as a group on a monthly basis (with the exception of December) and all members serve on one or more sub-committees of the Board, such as finance, resource development, audit, homeownership, credit, project, community services, and nominating committees. These committees are augmented by other community volunteers with professional expertise in specific areas and/or residents of the neighborhoods we serve. The organization’s by-laws stipulate that half of the Board’s composition be comprised of residents – either homeowners who utilized our services, tenants, or other residents of communities we serve in Southern New Hampshire. The remainder of the Board is comprised of business representatives or local government officials. The maximum number of members of the Board of Directors is fifteen individuals.

Members of the Board of Directors bring to the organization a variety of strengths, whether it be finance, accounting, legal, mortgage, or community development. They are actively engaged in the strategic direction of the organization and set policy to be carried out at the staff level. They participate in the organizational assessment conducted by NeighborWorks® America, approve the annual budget, and conduct a review of the Executive Director.

It is expected that members of the Board of Directors attend monthly Board meetings and many committees of the Board also meet on a monthly basis. Hence, the time commitment to the organization is significant. All members of the Board are encouraged to participate in the organization’s annual gift campaign.

The organization also benefits from the involvement of our Board of Trustees, currently comprised of ten individuals, all of whom are leaders in the community. Several of our Trustees were involved in the founding of the organization in the early 1990s. Although the Board of Trustees does not officially govern the organization, the Board of Trustees serve in a pivotal role as advisors and ambassadors for NeighborWorks® Southern New Hamsphire, helping to educate and inform others about the role and importance of affordable housing and neighborhood revitalization. The Board of Trustees meets on a quarterly basis.